The Aftermath
by Dan007
Summary: Dan Woods didn't want to save another world. But anything is better than sitting in a thunderstorm. Sent to New York City, Woods is attacked by a strange girl who has ties to an underground group bent on destroying any and all fantasy creatures. With new allies in tow, Woods is in a race against the clock to find precious artifacts that will change the fate of NYC and the world...
1. Chapter 1: Familiar Secrets

Chapter 1: Familiar Secrets…

Location: The Woods Residence, Woodgrove, NY

A storm was raging outside. Rain hitting the roof of the house, falling at such a rate the sound was nearly defeaning. The brightness of lightning lit up the room even though it was already lit by the flourescent lightbulbs. The thunder, loudest out of them all, rang out like a shotgun in the air. Sitting in the living room, watching the weather report, I sat and thought why the storm hadn't stopped yet. My mom and dad left for an important meeting respectivly, and my sister sat in the basement, scared out of her wits afraid that the house would get on fire.

"Michelle, the storm isn't going to burn the house. Get back upstairs." I said.

"No." She said. For as long as I could remember, she was always terrified of thunderstorms. Probably cause of the noise. Or as a way to play the Gamecube during the week. A rule by our parents that has remained in effect to this day is that you can't play video games during the weekdays (except for Friday). But as I got older, this rule started getting more and more tedious. I'd just have to deal with it. Another thunder clap, this time much closer. I jumped, Michelle squelled downstairs.

"Scared, Dan?" A voice asked. I jumped again. The voice wasn't Michelle's so who was it? I realized soon enough who it was.

"What do you want, Megan?" I asked.

"A little hostile aren't we?" She said smirking. Megan was a young woman wearing a black dress with long blonde hair. "I was thinking you want a way out of this awful weather."

"Yeah. I can't play the Wii, and Michelle is probably on the Gamecube playing Pokemon." I said.

"Have you ever been to new York City, Woods?" She asked.

"A long time ago, when I was young." I said. I remember that my family went by train, walked around the city, browsed the large Toys R Us in Time Square, and went to a throwback restaurant from the 50's. It was very fun.

"Well gues what? Welcome to the Big Apple, Dan." She said, dissapearing in an instant. My head hurt, I couldn't move. I fell to the ground in pain as the living room evaporated out of existence, replaced by a cold rooftop. I fought through the pain and stood up. Lights illuminated the streets as I looked from the edge. The sun set on the day as I realized that not only the storm stopped, but this was NYC.

Location: The Rooftops, New York City, NY

"Thanks a lot, Megan, you bitch." I muttered. I started walking back to the center of the roof as something hit me in the back as I went sprawling to the ground. I shouted in pain. I got up quickly and turned around. The figure who attacked me appeared to be a young girl. She wore a dark purple face mask with a matching outfit with an incredibly long blonde ponytail coming out of the mask. In her hands was a dark green spear. It must have been very advanced technologically as it appeareed almost cybernetic.

"That should have killed you!" She said.

"You'll find I'm a bit hard to kill lady." I said.

"Then I guess I'll enjoy this." She ran at me swinging the spear. I ducked, rolling to the side. I took out my weapon, the Blue Saber Sword, shining in the fading sunlight. The girl swung again. I blocked, lashing out at her. Sparks flew as the sword and spear connected. She jumped backwards before rushing again with the spear held high. I sidestepped and punched her with my offhand. She fell backwards and attempted to get up off of the ground, using the spear as a weight. I kicked the spear, its metal clanging on the ground as the girl fell on the concrete, my sword poised for the kill.

"Please, whatever you do, don't kill me! I'm begging you!" She said, frightened. I put the sword back in its hilt and extended my hand towards my attacker.

"Get up. I won't kill you on the condition you tell me whats going here and who you are." I said.

"My name's Huntsgirl. And I guess you're a sap for hurt girls you fucking idiot!" She said, punching me in the stomach and hobbling off of the rooftop.

"Get back here you bitch!" I shouted after her. I collapsed in pain. That girl sure as hell could punch. I guess I should get off this rooftop, but how?

Location: The Streets of New York City

Searching around, I noticed a fire escape below me and climbed it down into the streets below. People were all over walking, talking on cell phones or hailing taxis. I for one needed a place to sleep. The punch from that girl left me weak and tired. It seems as if the more I do this, the more tired I get. It's a bit strange. Walking down the streets, turning in any direction to get away from that rooftop, I came upon Central Park. I didn't know how I got their but I could probably find a place to sleep here. Besides, nobody would probably bother me. Right. I found an empty bench and sat down on it. It was probably the closest thing I would ever get to a bed so I laid down and shut my eyes. Their more comfortable then you think.


	2. Chapter 2: A New York Welcome

Chapter 2: A New York Welcome

"Excuse me? Sir."

A voice broke me out of my sleep as I once again realized that I slept on a fucking park bench. I got up and my eyes adjusted to a flashlight shining in my face. As I adjusted to the light, I realized I was looking at a uniformed police officer.

"Oh crap." I muttered.

"Do you mind telling me what a person like you is doing out after dark?" He asked. His voice didn't sound strict at all. He sounded concerned.

"I just got here and I don't have a hotel room or house at all. I just decided to sleep here. I'm sorry, officer." I said.

"It's okay. But I was worried because a lot of incidents have happened after dark here in Central Park. If you'd follow-

He got cut off by a rumbling that grew steadily louder. It seemed to be from the park itself.

"What was that?" I asked.

"Stay right here. Don't move at all, okay? Here." He said and pulled out a completely black device. A handgun.

"Why are you giving me this?" I asked in bewilderment.

"In case you get attacked. But don't fire it unless you only have to, alright?" He said. I nodded and grabbed the firearm and set it down beside me. The officer walked into the woods. His dark uniform making him near invisible in the darkness. I sat on the bench, frozen in fear. What is going on in this city? That officer is probably dead if I don't follow him. And why did he give me a gun? I'm just 13. Never the less, I got off of the bench, reluctantly grabbed the handgun and followed after the fading beam of light, making sure to move slowly where he couldn't see me. Sneaking through the park after the cop led to a clearing with a small river going through it. Their was a sight where I swear I was dreaming still. Two flying beasts were circling over a ginormous entity weilding what appeared to be a tree branch. The beast swung at the flying monster before it spewed fire from it's mouth, catching the bark on fire.

"Put you're hands where I can fucking see them!" The officer shouted. The flaming bark went and hit him, sending him flying through the air. I couldn't see where he landed. But he was probably dead, if not seriously injured. The pistol was clutched in my hand I wasn't thinking straight. I shouted,

"Hey, fucktard!" It turned what must have been it's head towards me and I pulled the trigger.

BANG!

The guns muzzle flashed and a grotesque "thunk" noise went as the bullet met flesh and went through, striking brain, as the beast collapsed with a loud thud. The bark slowly burning down as it illuminated the beast. It's green bald head forming a red puddle beneath it. A twinkling light caught my attention as I neared the corpse. I felt a metallic object and grabbed it. It was nothing more than a crystallized skull, its bright green eyes staring up at me. I shrugged and turned around to leave but I forgot about the flying monsters, which were directly in front of me.

"JESUS!" I shouted, pulling out the gun and drawing it at them.

"Oh damn! Don't shoot us please! We just need the skull you have." One of them said. This one was colored red, green and yellow with a hairstyle resembling flames but black and green at the top. The other was blue and grey with a beard.

"Jake, be quiet. Young man, the item you hold is of extreme importance to us, now if you would kindly hand over the skull to us, you can forget about all of this." The blue monster said.

"I'm not giving you anything unles you tell me whats going on!" I demanded. "That ninja girl only punched me in the stomach and I want answers from anybody or anything strange."

"Rose!?" The red monster exclaimed. Suddenly, a blue fog engulfed the beast and suddenly all that stood their was a boy. The hair remained the same but he wore a red jacket and jean shorts. "Did she have a long blonde ponytail?"

"That's the one." I told him.

"Oh man." He said. "Sorry you had to get caught up in all of this. I'm-

"Don't tell him our names here. If you want to learn more young man, come to Canal Street Electronics and say "I want to believe"." On that note, he grabbed the boy and flew off into the city.

"Wait a second…" I shouted, but they kept on flying away.

"Goddammit, what do I do know?" I asked. As I looked around, a group of people surrounded me. They wore robes with hoods and carried the same spear that ninja girl had. Hell, I saw her here as well standing next to what I think was their leader. He wore a large skull over his face, a mask revealing only his eyes. He was talking to the girl quietly but loud enough where I could hear them.

"Did he take the skull?" He asked.

"I don't see it master, why don't we ask him about it?"

"The Huntsclan does not bargain with outsiders, Huntsgirl. You know this." He responded.

"He took out that orc. He must know something about the skull." She said back.

"You're looking for that skull, aren't you?" I asked. They both jumped when I spoke.

"How on earth did you know?" The girl from earlier asked.

"I could hear you from all the way over here. You'd need to work on you're whispering. And I don't have it. Two flying monsters just took them and flew off." I said.

"Damn dragons!" The man shouted. "Kill the boy!" A hooded man rushed at me and slashed the spear. I dodged and fired the gun at him in the head. He crumpled to the ground.

"He's got a gun!" They shouted.

"Everyone out, NOW!" Most of them swarmed away from the corpse of their fallen compatriot, except for the girl and the man.

"Surprised you didn't tell them to stay where they are. What kind of leader are you anyway?" I asked. He chuckled.

"What do you know about leadership, boy. Huntsgirl?" He said.

"Yes, Master?" She asked.

"Take care of the pest and return to us." He said before walking back into the darkness of the park. The fire from the tree was fading, the darkness slowly retaking this area of the park.

"You don't really want to fight, do you?" I asked her as I sat down, looking at the fire.

"What do you mean?" She asked, hesitantly.

"You don't want to deal with all of this bullshit. You don't want to kill and steal." I said.

"Yeah. How'd you know?" She asked, sitting down next to me. I laughed.

"You and me are one and the same. I haven't been doing this whole adventureing buisness for long but it grows old after awhile, doesn't it?" I asked.

"Tell me about it. I'm Huntsgirl by the way." She said, extending her arm for a handshake.

"I don't know if I should trust you on that handshake, Huntsgirl." I said.

"Doesn't matter. What matters is that you get those skulls first before we do." She said.

"Then lets make it a friendly compettiton." I said standing up to leave.

"Trust me, this is anything BUT friendly." She said before running through the park, into the darkness and fading from view.

Those gunshots may have drawn peoples attentions. I could hear sirens in the distance, signifying EMS and more cops.

"Talk about a New York welcome." I said aloud as I walked away from the smoldering tree and back into the city, the gun carefully hidden in my jacket.

Let's see just what this city has to offer, shall we?


	3. Chapter 3: I Want to Believe

Chapter 3: I Want to Believe

Location: The Streets of NYC

Walking away from Central Park, the EMS van went speeding down the road towards the entrance. I was glad to be out of their. I didn't want to get in trouble with the police again so I just kept walking. Hell, this is turning into one eventful night for sure. The blue dragon said something about "Canal Street Electronics", now where is that? I should ask someone but who? As if on cue, a uniformed officer ran towards the direction of the park.

"Officer, do you know where Canal Street is?" I shouted at him as he ran.

"Down the block!" He shouted back as he kept running. I looked down the street and saw a sign that said Canal Street. How convienent of them. I walked down the street looking for the electronics shop they said it was called when I noticed the name on it across the street. The storefront was very chinese esque, with a neon sign with the word "TV" in red, punctuating its existance. I walked closer and saw its name, Canal Street Electronics, with its motto plastered underneath: "Never had a customer, Never had a sale". Talk about scaring prospective customers. Bad for business if you ask me. Why would they want to me to go here? I really don't have much of a choice. I pushed open the door and entered the dark interior of the shop.

Location: Canal Street Electronics, New York City, NY

"We're closed for the day! Get out!" An old mans voice said as I walked in. The storefront was in shambles. TVs and VCRs and all sorts of electronics lay scatered and in varying states of disrepair. "Didn't you hear me? We're closed! Leave now before I call the cops!"

"The cops have their hands full already and you know why, old man." I said.

"What are you talking about?" The voice said again.

"You know who this is. I want to believe." I said. No one responded for a couple of minutes. What happened? Did they already forget or something? Probably not. "Are you going to respond or something?"

"Come in, quickly!" The voice spoke up again. I walked in through a doorway marked "Staff Only". The room was like a living quarters, with a couch and a makeshift kitchen on a counter. Their the boy with the red jacket was sitting their on the couch, next to a blonde girl. She wore a white t shirt along with pink colored jeans. An old man was standing over the counter wearing a blue robe with a grey beard which reminded me of Fu Manchu. Also, a grey dog was laying on the ground sleeping.

"I had a feeling you would show up but not this early." The old man said.

"Well I have questions and you have awnsers." I said.

"But first let's introduce ourselves." The boy said. "I'm Jake Long. That's my grandfather Lao. But you can call him Gramps as I do. And this is Rose." He pointed at the girl sitting next to him. She gave a weak smile and waved at me.

"Nice to meet you." She said.

"And this lazy grey excuse for a dog is Fu." Lao said.

"He isn't lazy all the time, Gramps." Jake said.

"Alright, not all the time, but he still can be lazy." The man said.

"Well its very nice to meet you all and hear about you're life story but I came here to get answers. I'm Dan Woods, but Woods is just fine if you want to call me that." I said.

"Well Dan, if you'll take a seat we'll tell you everything you'll need to know." Lao said, motioning to a chair I was standing in front of. I sat down and heard what they had to say.

"The beast you shot tonight in Central Park was an orc. And if you couldn't tell from Jakes outburst, he's a dragon." Lao said.

"Wait just a second. You're trying to tell me that dragons and monsters are real?" I asked. "Are you shitting me?"

"Absolutly not. There are unicorns in the park, mermaids in the East River, and Leprachauns on Wall Street. You saw for yourself tonight just a couple moments ago." Lao continued. "And you met some of our most worthy opponents."

"Those guys in cloaks with the spears. I know about them." I said.

"Their called the Huntsclan. They exist solely to eradicate all magical creatures in the world." Rose said.

"Then why the hell are they targeting me? I'm just a human." I said. Why would they attack me for starters?

"They attack anyone who gets in your way. Seeing how you killed one of their own, you'll be one of their priorities to kill." Rose said.

"Stop right their lady." I said. "How'd you know I killed a Huntsclan member?" Rose looked at me straight faced. She was hiding something. I could tell. But what was it?

"I'm surprised you don't recognized me, Dan. How about we make this a, how'd you put it? A "Friendly competition"?" She said, smirking at me. I realized it right their. The same blue eyes and blonde hair from before. Put it in a ponytail and put a mask on her and she's…

"YOU'RE Huntsgirl?" I asked, surprised. She nodded.

"Isn't it obvious? Though I am impressed. You figured it out faster than Jake did. And you sure can fight." She said.

"That's not far! He just met you and you tell him this, but I figure it out on the schools ski trip." Jake said.

"So Rose is working with us to stop the Huntsclan. And what the hell are they planning that involves those skulls?" I asked.

"The skulls are ancient Aztec artifacts that if their brought together, can grant a person one, irreversible wish." Lao explained.

"The Huntsman, that tall man you saw, plans to use the skulls to wipe out all the magical creatures in the world. We have one so we have a slight advantage over him. We know where another one is located but we can't get it tonight. We'll tell you tomorrow morning, Dan." Rose said.

"Fell free to stay here for the night if you want to. Were more than happy to help you if you help us." Jake said.

"Well since I'm in this game as well, they'll take me out along with you guys, so I've got no choice. When do we start?" I asked.

"Tomorrow morning. Be ready, Dan." Rose said.

"Oh I'll be ready. What will we do about supplies?" I asked.

"I can have Fu steal some rounds for your handgun while you and Jake are looking for the skull." Lao said.

"What about Rose?"

"I'll be as Huntsgirl looking with the Huntsclan. And don't blow my cover. I can't have you call me Rose when I'm near them." She said.

"Point taken." I said. "We've got a big day ahead of us so we should probably turn in for the night."

"Agreed." Jake said.

"See you all in the morning." Rose said.

All of my questions have been awnsered (to my knowledge at least) but I guess I'm a part of this conflict. If I can find those skulls before the Huntsclan can, then we can probably win this fight. If not… then I'm sure were all going to go to hell.

Not like it would matter anyway…


End file.
